The former candidate for the Brexit Party in North Swindon approves of Nigel Farage’s decision to withdraw him from the election.

On Monday Nigel Farage announced the party would not contest the 317 seats held by the Conservatives, in order to avoid splitting the votes of Brexit supporters.

It means Justin Stares in South Swindon, and Leslie Willis, who had already been reassigned by party bosses to North Swindon from North Wiltshire will no longer be on the ballot paper.

Mr Willis said it was a shock, but wrote that he was in favour: “Everyone felt a sense of shock at the news that so many Brexit Party candidates were going to be stood down. But when were accepted as candidates we were told that this might happen.

“Nigel had a very difficult decision to make, in my view he made a very wise choice. I think that in the fullness of time people will see that it was the right one, I am backing him all the way.

“He has not made these choices for his own political gain but for the good of the country.

“We did not want to be the party who split the vote to allow anti-democratic Remainers to gain any power.

“Boris has now made a pledge that he is going for a Canada-style trade deal which means we will not be politically aligned with the EU. Furthermore he has said that we will leave by the end of 2020, with a reasonable majority I believe he will carry this out. This is a far better deal than the original concept.

“It’s not perfect or the no deal we wanted but under the circumstances as long as we are not politically aligned with the EU it is about the best we might get at this stage.”

Conservative Justin Tomlinson, Labour’s Kate Linnegar and the Greens’ Andy Bentley will compete in North Swindon.